The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1887-09-21
Narrow escape from a pig Gin
namon Bear.

The largest bear any Of us ever saw
was cinnamon that came within an
inch of killing one of my men, q good
hunter and first-class guide-Charles
HUFF. I may refer to the big cinnamon
too, as an instance Of the danger that
sometimes attends trapping the bear }
He get his traps near Sunlight, in the
spring, and was unable to visit them for
a week When he got TO the bait, trap
aud log were gone After taking up the
trail be soon found the remnants of his
log chewed 10 match-wood the beareyi-
IDENTITY large one, had gone off with the
trap. He followed his trail as long as
he had light, but found nothing, and had
to return to camp. Next day. very fool
ishly. he took the trail again alone, be-
ginning where he had Jeff off After long
march he came TO the steep side ofa hill;
the bear had evidently gone up there
on the soft, snow-sodden ground the trail
vas plain. Just as he was beginning to
ascend there was rush and a roar, and
the bear was upon him. He had no time
TO put his repeater to his shoulder, but
letting il fall between his hands, pulled
the trigger. The bear was within few
feet Of him, and by great chance the
unained bullet took him between the
eyes. He had evidently tried the hill
side and, worried by the heavy trap, had
come back on his trail and lain behind
great heap of dirt, into which he had
partly burrowed, waiting for his enemy.
Among the debris of spring-tide-fallen
stones and uprooted trees-a bear could
easily lie hidden, if he was mad and wan
ted TO conceal himself, till the enemy
was within few feet. 1t was a terribly
close shave.
THE PLUCK OF 4 WOUNDED GRIZZLY.
We stalked two small grizzlies in the
open one evening. They We're busy
turning over stones, in order to get the
grubs and worms underneath, and when
we managed TO get, unseen, within forty
wards. at first fire each received bullet
broadside behind the shoulder; but,
seemingly none the worse, they both
turned down-hill, us bear will when
wounded, nine times out of ten, and
made for the rayine, whence they had
evidently come. This gave me nice
open shot as they passed, and No. / roll
ed over dead not 50 No. ,. Before he
got hundred yards away | hit him three
times. My rifle was fifty-calibre Bull
ard repeater, the one ! have used for
years-one hundred grains ofpowd rand
a solid ball At the forth shot he fell all
OF a heap, seemingly dead. TO save
which lay about seventy yards above the
second, and dragged him down the steep
incline to where the second lay, for con-
venience in skinning We got within
few feet of the bear, when up hejurnped,
and, ON one hind leg and one fore, went
for Frank. The attack was wastremendonsly
unexpected and sudden. At glance
you could see that the poor, plucky brute
was past hurting anyone, for one arm was
smashed and his lower jaw was shot al
most completely away. Yet | tell the
sim. lie truth when ] say that in a few
strides he actually caught up to Frank,
who MADE most admirable time; then
he suddenly fell dead. We examined
that bear carefully; he was a small one
not weighing more than two hundred
pounds, and was shot all to pieces. Each
of the five bullets had fired had struck
him one hip and one forearm were bro
ken, the lower jaw shot away there was
one shot in the neck, and one, through
and through. behind the shoulder. 1t is
never safe to fool with a grizzly (; he may
run away as fast as an elk, or he may not.
He may drop to the first well planted
bullet, or he may stand up till blown al-
most to pieces.-From Camping and
Hunting in the Shoshone, ,'-Scri6ners
n0gdziite.